In the stacker crane, drive mechanisms such as a travel motor, an elevation motor, a drum, a control panel are provided in a space extending from a position in front of, or behind a mast of a cart, to the end of the cart. Therefore, the overall length of the stacker crane is significantly larger than the width of an elevation frame, and the travel route distance (the distance between both terminals of the travel rail) is larger than the total length of the racks. Therefore, in some spaces along the travel rail, no rack or station is provided. Under the circumstances, the desired storage efficiency in the automated warehouse cannot be achieved. In this regard, in a related conventional technique, Laid-Open Patent Application No. 6-24511 proposes a technique of providing a plurality of slide forks on an elevation frame of a stacker crane.